Page 535 - Handbook of Biomechatronics

Artificial Hearts 529

Fig. 3 The first artificial heart pump built by William Sewell and William Glenn. (Based on
Glenn, W., 1993. Seawell’s Pump. Guthrie J. 63 (1).)

cams that occluded and released small rubber tubes leading to the com-
pressed air and vacuum lines that actually drove the pump (Glenn, 1993).
In 1949, the pump was used to bypass the right heart of dogs in two
experiments lasting for 61 and 82min, respectively, with the right ventricle
wide open. After restoration of normal circulation, removal of the pump and
closure of the chest, the dogs made uneventful recoveries.
Four years later in 1953, the first heart surgery was undertaken on a
human subject by John Gibbon using a similar pump for cardiopulmonary
bypass (a primitive heart-lung machine). This ushered in the era of open
heart surgery, but also started researchers investigating the possibility of pro-
viding augmentation or even replacement of the natural heart (Joyce
et al., 2012).